Bella and Max

Organizing Workshops!!!

As you all may or may not know, I am not the most organized person out there.  It's not that I never was, but with all that I have going on with my life things get a little hectic and I would say I have lost some of my organizing skills over the years.  So was I ever happy when Maulitta came to the rescue!

Bella and Max, in conjunction with the Village Bean, are going to offer organizing workshops with Maulitta Brown (Personal Organizer and owner of Clear Intentions) or busy women and moms.  There will be a series of three workshops and you will receives a discount if you sign up for all three classes. 

You better believe I'll be there! This is one of my New Year's resolutions!

Workshops by Maulitta Brown, Professional Organizer & Productivity Trainer

 

Clear the Clutter and Create a Space You Love - January 7, 2010

Learn the simple SEE IT, MAP IT, DO IT© and S.T.A.C.K.S© process to get organized today.  In this workshop we will learn about clutter and how to conquer it once and for all!  We will also talk about creating a home that you truly love and enjoy spending time in.  Clutter keeps us stuck in the past, when what we really want is to live in the present and create space for the future.  This class is great for those who are overwhelmed by their stuff and don’t know where to start. 

60 minutes                 © 2001-2006 Clear & SIMPLE, Inc.  All Rights Reserved.

Class Fee $25

 

Secrets of Organized Moms - January 14, 2010

Whether you have 1 child or 6, whether you work outside the home or in the home, maintaining order in today’s busy lifestyle is a full time job.  We will discuss ways to stay organized, create routines that work for you, meal planning and how to handle all of those school papers. 

60 Minutes

Class Fee $25

 

Paper Management 101 - January 21, 2010

We have so much paper coming at us from all directions.  Work papers, personal papers, children’s papers; it is hard to stay on top of it all.  Come to this class to learn how to set up some simple filing systems to reduce your paper piles. 

60 Minutes

Class Fee $25   *If you take this class and decide you want to do the hands-on workshop, your class fee will be credited to the $99

 

A separate class that will be offered at a later date will be with a special filing system (a three hour class)..... you will need to have take Paper Management 101, but again, you'll get a discount if you do!

Filing Made Simple! Hands-On Workshop           **Special Offer for Bella and Max/Village Bean Clients**

In this fun, hands-on workshop you will learn to think about your paper in a different way with the Freedom Filer Self-Purging Home Filing System.  Imagine having a system that you don’t have to spend hours sorting through each year at tax time.  You will:

§ Learn what to do with all the paper that comes into your space.

§ Learn how to set up an action system and how to use it.

§ Create a permanent filing solution for all of your files.

§ Finally understand which documents to keep and which to toss. 

§ Leave with a system that is ready to take home and start filing!

§ What to bring: 100 hanging files and a container to carry your kit home in.

Workshop fee $99 (Includes Freedom Filer Kit $50 value)

**This 3 hour workshop fee is normally $150

 

Pre-Register by December 23 and pay only $25 or

pay $30 at the door

Pre-Register and pay only $65 for all 3 classes!

 

Filing Made Simple Hands-On Workshop is offered separately at the special rate of $99 for Bella and Max and Village Bean clients. 

 

Seating will be limited, call the shop (425.488.8200) or email me to soon to make your reservation!  We will host 20 people at the Village Bean with seating beginning around 8:45 am so that you can get your coffees and morning treats prior to the 9:00 start time.  Click here to see the Village Beans menu (no outside food or drink is allowed).

the plan

Holy Guacamole, am I a bad blogger or what?  Don't answer that.  I just looked at my stats (which I should be doing everyday but don't) and I am sad/happy to see that there are still a bunch of people who stop by each day only to see the same old outdated post sitting at the top of my blog. 

I feel a little overwhelmed..... blog, facebook, twitter, store, salon, kids, husband, website.... things, life.  There is a lot to keep up with.  I haven't even changed the photos on our blog or website to reflect the new store and we moved in March!  Yikes!

So here's the plan.  I am re-doing the darn thing.  Today.  The blog.  I am going to organize it, categorize it, re-photo-ize it.  The thing is I want it to look like this (Heather Bailey) or like this (Beerleaguer) or like this (OhJoy!).... which, by the way are all featured on the typepad homepage and should be able to be accomplished somehow.  But do I need to be a programmer?  And how do I get a good twitter background page?  I need a good twitter background page too.  And my website, my poor little ol' website.  If it wereFarmville it would have wilted and closed down a long time ago.  Poor website.

I start each day with the best intentions.  To get a lot done (I usually do) but I can't get enough done.  I need help.  I need to release some of this and let someone help me. 

But today, I will get the blog fixed up... and the website fixed a little and photos changed.  I will.

A little humor in the morning......

Alison sent this to me this morning.  It was a good laugh out loud fw: email....

 

 

Before and After
=================

When I was younger, I remember receiving the inevitable
homework assignment to write an essay on "something I am
thankful for." Then I'd spend a lot of time sitting in my room
trying to figure out just what in the world that could possibly
be; and I'd end up writing down everything I could think of from
God to environmental consciousness.

But after having children, my priorities have clearly changed:

BEFORE CHILDREN: I was thankful to have been born the USA, the
most powerful free democracy in the world.
AFTER CHILDREN : I am thankful for Velcro tennis shoes. As
well as saving valuable time, now I can hear the sound of my
son taking off his shoes -- which gives me three extra seconds
to activate the safety locks on the back seat windows right
before he hurls them out of the car and onto the freeway.

BEFORE CHILDREN: I was thankful for the recycling program
which will preserve our natural resources and prevent the
overloading of landfills.
AFTER CHILDREN : I am thankful for swim diapers because every
time my son wanders into water in plain disposables, he ends
up wearing a blimp the size of, say, New Jersey, on his
bottom.

BEFORE CHILDREN: I was thankful for fresh, organic vegetables.
AFTER CHILDREN: I am thankful for microwaveable macaroni and
cheese - without which my children would be surviving on about
three bites of cereal and their own spit.

BEFORE CHILDREN: I was thankful for the opportunity to obtain
a college education and have a higher quality of life than my
ancestors.
AFTER CHILDREN : I am thankful to finish a complete thought
without being interrupted.

BEFORE CHILDREN: I was thankful for holistic medicine and
natural herbs.
AFTER CHILDREN : I am thankful for pediatric cough syrup
guaranteed to "cause drowsiness" in young children.

BEFORE CHILDREN:  I was thankful for all of the teachers who
had taught, encouraged and nurtured me throughout my formative
years.
AFTER CHILDREN : I am thankful for all of the people at Weight
Watcher who let me strip down to pantyhose and a strategically
placed scarf before getting on the scale each week.

BEFORE CHILDREN: I was thankful for the opportunity to
vacation in exotic foreign countries so I could experience a
different way of life in a new culture.
AFTER CHILDREN : I am thankful to have time to make it all the
way down the driveway to get the mail.

BEFORE CHILDREN: I was thankful for the Moosewood Vegetarian
cookbook.
AFTER CHILDREN : I am thankful for the Butterball turkey
hotline.

BEFORE CHILDREN: I was thankful for a warm, cozy home to share
with my loved ones.
AFTER CHILDREN : I am thankful for the lock on the bathroom
door.

BEFORE CHILDREN: I was thankful for material objects like
custom furniture, a nice car and trendy clothes.
AFTER CHILDREN : I am thankful when the baby spits up and
misses my good shoes.

BEFORE CHILDREN: I was thankful for my wonderful family.
AFTER CHILDREN: I am thankful for my wonderful family.

Family

Not long ago I posted something about my cousin being in hospice, kind of an off-hand remark at the end of another post about treating people nicely because you don't know what is going on in their lives.  She passed away recently and while she was in hospice we got the bad news that her mother, my aunt, had the same form of cancer.  It's been a pretty rough month or so.  Moving a store, being a wife and mother and dealing with the heartbreak of what is really inevitable for all of us, death.  On the outside I've been trying to stay somewhat upbeat and happy on the inside, not so much.

Last night my two cousins and I decided to get together for a little girl talk, bonding time.  They are my only two cousins in the United States and I grew up really only seeing them during the holidays, even though we live so close.  It's sad really that we don't know each other better, that we are family and we kind of just know a little about about each other, not a lot.  Not like we should.

But on the flip side, all this "stuff" we are going through is bringing us together again as a family.  I have not, in a very... very long time, laughed like I did last night.  Laughed so hard tears came to our eyes laugh.  Although there were tears of sadness, the tears from laughing felt so great.  We talked about our kooky families, our childhood, memories of our parents from each others prospective, how everything has turned out.  It felt SO good to just talk and laugh and cry.  All for three hours in a Chipotle restaurant.  People probably thought we were nuts and the staff probably just wanted us to go home, we closed the place (if you can actually close a Chipotle).

After we left Kelli gave me a ginormous (if that is really a word) amount of Barbie stuff that my cousin Jenny had.  She told me to give them to my girls and for them to have all their friends over to have a Barbie party and for all the girls to take stuff home.  That Jenny would love that.  After I returned home the girls were still up and we took a peek at all the Barbie stuff and my goodness, they lit up.  There were so many shoes and clothes and dolls.  And some were old and so cool.  There is even an astronaut Barbie.  The girls wanted to play with them and I found myself saying no, these are old... they're collectible, and wondering to myself if I could really invite Bella's friends over to give these things away that belonged to my cousin that is no longer here.  I don't know, maybe it's too soon, maybe I will be able to someday.  Even though a part of me says it's just stuff, it's not her and she would love it for the girls to play with them and share them, I can't yet.  I still put them up, up where the girls can't reach them and where they will be safe.

I learned a lot in the three hours I spent with Kelli and Nora last night.  I need to laugh more, enjoy life more, appreciate who I have in my life more and not worry about the stuff that's out of my control.  That I can't control so many things and that I don't have to.  A lot is going on in the world right now but.... life is short.  There's important things and the things that aren't so important.  This isn't a dress rehearsal, this is the life we get and we should all live it with love, happiness and to the best of our ability.

So what if sales tax is going up today, I have great people in my life and I am alive and that's all that matters to me.

Oops, I vented

Apparently I was suffering from a combination of PMS and a ton of bad news yesterday, coupled with the culmination of weeks of hard work and stress.  

Sorry for venting last night.  Which shouldn't be too much of a surprise because my blog is a pretty open book on all kinds of things. 

I've only dealt with death once before, 9 years ago.  During that time I handled things the same way.  I get this feeling that life should be lived to the fullest and that all people should be treated kindly.  If that doesn't happen and someone is flat out mean, I either just walk away and cry or blow up.  I chose, in my shop, to walk away.  People should always treat each other with kindness and respect, no matter what.  You don't know what is going on in their lives.  Be nice.  Be kind.  That's how I try to live.... all the time.  Speak to, and treat others the way you want to be treated.   It may be the last time you see them.

Don't be surprised if you come in the store and I've done something drastic.  The last time I went through this I chopped off my hair and put pink streaks through it.  Granted I wasn't 42 but I seem to go through a "you only live once so do what you want to do" phase in dealing with these things so you never know.

I think this is why I LOVE owning a children's shop.  I get to see life at its best. Pregnant women come in and  I get to see their children and families grow.  I just had a woman come in the other day and met her when she was first pregnant and now her son is almost two and walking and talking.  I love that.

Customer Service

No matter what is going on in my personal life, I try to give the best customer service possible.  In fact, I've been known to talk people out of buying things that wouldn't fit their needs.  Today, Friday the 13th of all days I managed to have a terrible experience, so terrible in fact, I walked away from someone for the first time ever in over two years.  Let me explain.

Me: Hello

Her:  Where is your shoe measurer?

Me, as I walk over to help Her: We don't have one.  All children's shoes are sized differently so we try them on to fit.  What might be a 5 in one brand, can be a 4 or a 6 in another brand so we like to just make sure they fit.

Her: Oh. So how do you know which one to choose.

Me: Well, let's try some on.

From there it just goes downhill.  Her child is a year old and has never worn shoes.  So almost by instinct when I put the shoe on she arches her foot.  I take it off she curls her toes up.  I try to explain if you get shoes too big they fall off and it is difficult for a child learning to walk when the shoes are too big.  She wants shoes that she can wear two or three months from now.  I say that I can't promise they will fit then.  I try to explain that the smaller brand is great for first walkers as they don't pick their feet up all the way and that a rubber soled shoe can tend to catch if they don't pick their feet up and they can fall, she should get used to a shoe that has less grip at first.  She explains that she walks just fine if someone is holding her fingers.

Long story shorter (trust me it could be longer, this went on for about five-ten minutes)... if I said black, she said white.  She apparently went to another store before us that measured her daughter at a 4, she tried a four and it worked.  They were right and I was not telling her what they did so I was wrong I guess.  I suggested she go to the place she found that the shoe fit.  She said it felt like we were just arguing... I heard that as I was already halfway back to the counter.

I've never experienced this before and I've experienced some "different" things.  But I have two kids and I've been through this twice and from my experience this is how it has worked both times.  I don't claim to be an expert but I have been doing this for several years and sold hundreds and hundreds of shoes.  I feel strongly that I have some solid knowledge about the products I provide my customers.  Although I know the customer is usually "right", sometimes I think I can offer better information and I don't want them to waste their money.  I will not sell shoes that are way too big and unfit.  If you already have your mind made up that you need a certain size, I will provide them to you.  If you have just been fitted someplace else then tell me the size and I will get it for you.  I will spend as much time helping you but will not argue to sell you something you will be unhappy with.  Please don't give me a hard time when I am only trying to help you.

I am human, I have feelings and apparently I reached a limit today for the first time.  I sort of feel bad, but I was treated poorly and I really didn't deserve it.  Human to human.  Treat others the way you want to be treated.

I had to get that off my chest.  Thanks to all the amazing customers that shop here and trust that I am not guiding them down the wrong path.

I am going to go now and finish explaining to my daughters what hospice is and prepare them for the passing of my cousin, most likely this weekend.... and the cancer diagnosis we just received about another close family member a few days ago.

I am mad at my website provider

Ok, as if things aren't hectic enough.  Yesterday I received a call from my friend Marji in Vancouver, Canada wanting to know if I was alive and if things were ok.  She knows things have been a little haywire in my life lately.  Apparently she has been emailing me, not getting through.  As a last result she even tried to go to our website and use the "Contact Us" page to get me.  Well, surprise surrpise.... it doesn't work!   So she finally called the shop.

Urrghhh.  Seriously.  For awhile I was wondering why we had so many abandoned shopping carts (I can see that on the back end of our site).  After that ding-dong migration I only found out that after about a month and a half, when someone finally called the shop, that when you clicked your cart a big "Warning, this site might not be safe" thing came up because they didn't transfer my SSL during migration!  Now that that's fixed I find out, only because Marji called, that the contact form does not work! 

I pay good, hard earned money for a website that should work.  Especially in some of the most basic ways.  It doesn't do any good for someone to go all the way to cart and find a warning message!  But that's fixed.  But if someone is trying to contact us and they can't..... especially if there are website issues.  Oh my goodness!  Customers probably emailed me and think that I did not respond.  That's not good.  Not good at all.  I am so upset. 

Thank you so much Marji for calling me to make sure I was alive and for letting me know.  You're the best. Check out her website Girly Girls.... we are going to carry her clips soon, they are AMAZING, just like Marji!

What do you think about knock-offs?

I was reading an article the other day about how Gwen Stefani is suing Forever 21 because they have directly copied a pattern from one of her bags and used it for their clothing.  I can see why she is suing them if not for any other reason then they are stealing her designs and ideas and using them for a less expensive knock off, claiming it is their own.  We carry her children's line and it is very high quality, really cute and designed well.  On the left is Gwen Stefani's design, on the right... Forever 21.

So anyway, we went to a "Chain Store" last night to pick up some cleaning supplies and household things when I strolled past the baby aisle.  I could not believe what I saw and it was actually a little upsetting. 

As you can see in the photo below, on the left side is a onesie we carry that says.... "Party Tonight... My Crib... 3am", made from a unique little company called Rebel Ink Baby.  They have a whole line of really fun, soft and well made tee's and onesies.  They are a U.S. company building a small business.  On the right is the flimsy little shirt from the big "Chain".  They sell it for $2.50!  Now, come on.  "Party in my crib...2am".  Rebel Ink trademarked their shirts, but I guess one little change makes it okay.  This big store also had a tee that read, "You Wake me, I'll wake you"  no doubt stolen from Wry Baby's  "You wake me, you take me".  I think Wry Baby's is better. 

There is something to be said about supporting the small business instead of the big guy who copies them.  I mean, if you are already selling yard furniture, housewares, bedding, car parts and sundries... why would you need to do this?